Molecular design, chemical synthesis and biological activity of artificial and DNA photocleaving carbohydrate-intercalator hybrids

Studies of the interaction between the small molecules and DNA, especially the effects of the structural characteristics of the small molecules on the DNA interaction, are very important for the design of DNA targeting new drugs. In this context, the development of photochemical DNA cleaving agents, which selectively cleave DNA by irradiation with light of a specific wavelength under mild conditions and without any additives such as metals and reducing agents, is very interesting from chemical and biological standpoints and offers considerable potential in medicine especially in the post-genome era. In this article, the molecular design, chemical synthesis, DNA photocleaving property and photo-selective cytotoxicity of such novel and artificial light activatable DNA cleaving agents, which consist of DNA intercalator and carbohydrate, are described.